‘Tales from Pioneers & Soldiers Cemetery’ Archives
TB Spawned innovative forerunner to University of Minnesota Medical Center, Fairview- Riverside
Dorothy, Lillian, and Hillmar Evanson c1911-13, based on Lillian”'s estimated age. Hillmar died from TB in 1913 at age 29 and Dorothy in 1915 at age 26. They and 99 others were hospitalized at Thomas Hospital and buried at Layman”'s Cemetery .Hilmar and Dorothy were only two of 101 people buried in the cemetery who died at Thomas Hospital between 1908 and 1917. Undoubtedly, many more who were not buried in Layman”'s Cemetery died there during those years and in the years between 1917 and the hospital”'s closing in 1929. Tuberculosis was the leading cause of death in Minnesota, and in 1910 approximately 2,500 Minnesotans died from the disease commonly known as the “white plague.” Thomas Hospital was a project of the United Church Hospital Association whose membership was primarily composed of Norwegian Lutherans. For $1 a year, members could vote on the UCHA”'s board, and anyone who donated $25 was entitled to a lifetime [...]
“Who will remember that we were here after we are gone?” Keepsakes and records entrusted between Bible”'s pages
 Joe Schumann found an old Bible including a note that said “Will you keep the number of Hilmars grave in case we should loose tract of it. Eugene lost the one we had befor. I gave him one to so in case he loose it I”'ve got one and so have you and as they may grade that part where he lays so if they take that marker I put there sometime ago we got the number of it. So take care of it.”The Bible was a wedding gift to Rachel and her husband John from her parents almost exactly 100 years ago. They were married on December 22, 1913. By Sue Hunter Weir It was almost a year ago that Joe Schumann found an old Bible in the attic of a house that he was working on in North Minneapolis. The Bible was written in Norwegian and had several small items tucked inside. There are three bookmarks, two of them celebrating Easter. The third looks like a miniature Turkish rug. There is a gold foil sticker with the word “father” written in script that most likely [...]
“The rest of the stories””¦from October “Tales”: Edith Eaton and “Dracula”
By Sue Hunter Weir Last month”'s story was about a mystery marker that city staff found in one of the city landfills. They brought it to the cemetery thinking that”'s where it belongs. It turns out that it did not belong to anyone who is (or was) buried in Pioneers and Soldiers Cemetery. The name on the stone was Mrs. F. Eaton. An unnamed baby was also listed on the marker. Two readers solved the mystery. Mrs. Eaton was Edith Dafoe Eaton, born in Canada around 1866. Her husband, Frederick F. Eaton was born in Maine in 1865. Edith and Frederick were married in Minneapolis in 1892. The baby”'s birthdate (he was a boy) and death date are the same, March 12, 1893. Edith died one week later. She and the baby are buried in Crystal Lake Cemetery. Frederick remarried in 1895. He and his second wife had two daughters””their oldest daughter was named Edith. Thanks, and congratulations, to Lu and Phil for having solved our mystery. Our next step is to contact Crystal [...]
